Amazon Plan of Action for Review Manipulation
Review manipulation deactivations carry a low reinstatement rate, and honesty is what separates the appeals that work from the ones that do not. Amazon usually holds the evidence already. The plan of action has to name the practice rather than minimize it.
Policy reference: Amazon Community Guidelines; Anti-Manipulation Policy for Customer Reviews
Is this your violation?
- •The notice cites the Anti-Manipulation Policy for Customer Reviews or the Community Guidelines
- •It references incentivized reviews, review groups, or seller-created accounts
- •You used a third-party review service, insert cards, or follow-up emails asking for positive feedback
- •Reviews disappeared from your ASINs shortly before the notice arrived
What Amazon wants to see
- ✓An honest acknowledgment of exactly what happened
- ✓Immediate cessation of the manipulative practice
- ✓A clear understanding of Amazon's review policy going forward
- ✓Evidence that the practice has stopped and will not recur
The three-part structure
Every Amazon plan of action answers the same three questions, in this order. Skipping one is the most common structural mistake.
- 1. Root cause. What went wrong, stated as a fact about your own operation. Not what Amazon misunderstood.
- 2. Corrective actions. What you have already done, with dates. Past tense throughout.
- 3. Preventive measures. The system that stops it recurring. A process, not a promise to be careful.
Root cause examples
Pick the one that is true for you and rewrite it in your own words with your own specifics.
- I used a third-party service to solicit customer reviews without realizing the service's methods violated Amazon's policies
- I requested reviews from buyers using language that was conditional on them leaving a positive review, rather than a neutral review request
- I offered discount codes or free products in exchange for reviews, which I now understand is prohibited
- Family members or friends left reviews for my products without my knowledge that this violated Amazon's policy
- I enrolled in an insert card program that encouraged buyers to contact me before leaving negative feedback, which Amazon considers review manipulation
Corrective action examples
Replace every bracket with your real supplier, brand, or date.
- I immediately terminated my relationship with [SERVICE NAME] on [DATE] and removed all product insert cards that contained review solicitation language
- I audited all existing reviews on my affected ASINs and reported any that I believe were left by individuals who received incentives
- I removed all product inserts and follow-up email sequences that contained review requests that could be considered conditional
- I stopped all communication campaigns to buyers outside of Amazon's approved messaging system
Preventive measure examples
- I will only request reviews through Amazon's "Request a Review" button in Seller Central, which uses Amazon's approved neutral language
- I will not use any third-party review solicitation services, including those that claim to be Amazon-compliant, without verifying their compliance with Amazon's current policy
- I will not offer any incentive, discount, or free product in exchange for a review
- I will train any staff or virtual assistants who handle customer communications on Amazon's review policy before allowing them to contact buyers
Evidence to attach
- •Explanation of what specific practice triggered the violation (incentivized reviews, family/friend reviews, seller-created accounts, etc.)
- •Confirmation that the practice has stopped
- •Any third-party service or tool you used that may have caused the violation without your full awareness
Mistakes that get this appeal rejected
- ✗Claiming the reviews were all legitimate when evidence of solicitation exists
- ✗Blaming a third-party service entirely without taking personal responsibility
- ✗Not specifically naming what practice was used and why it was wrong
- ✗Failing to describe what you have replaced the manipulative practice with
Questions sellers ask
I used a service that promised it was Amazon-compliant. Does that defence work?
Not on its own. Name the service, give the date you terminated it, and take responsibility for choosing it. Amazon treats a seller who blames a vendor entirely as a seller who will hire another one.
Are insert cards banned?
Insert cards themselves are not. Cards that ask for a positive review, offer anything in return, or route unhappy buyers to you before they leave feedback are. That last one catches sellers who believed they were doing customer service.
Can I ask for reviews at all?
Yes, through the Request a Review button in Seller Central. It uses wording Amazon approved and creates no policy exposure.
Not sure this is your violation?
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